Redesigning opportunity: communities as engines of change

From invisible barriers to shared empowerment: what really moves inclusion forward in tech, in conversation with Serena Sensini.

True community work doesn’t start from structure, it starts from belonging. It grows from walking side-by-side with others who are carving out space where people can belong. The real challenge is not creating the “perfect” initiative, but finding the courage to believe you are allowed to stand inside it. When people feel seen, transformation stops being theoretical and it becomes lived.

Today we’re surfing with Serena Sensini, Innovation Lead at Dedalus and founder of The Red Code.

You’ve built and nurtured several communities — actively supporting and promoting inclusive tech culture. Was there a specific moment when you realised you were actually creating a sense of belonging? What was the toughest challenge you faced in that process, and what made it worth it?

Honestly? I feel part of the communities, not in terms of shaping or leading, as I felt part of different, amazing families, and I couldn’t be more grateful. All the people I’ve met during this journey allowed me to grow as human and professional, and the chance to be part of the change and bring my own perspective is not something I could have achieved without every single person I’ve walked side by side with. 

The toughest challenge was finding the courage to feel “enough” to be part of, to have the bravery to do so. Usually communities have been built by people using their spare time to make something that’s valuable for others, so 99% you’ll find a warm, supportive group ready to welcome any further member, and that’s the best part.

Through your work supporting women entering the tech space, what are the three most invisible barriers you see? And which approaches have you seen actually break through those barriers?

That’s a tough one. Female quotas have been a first-step to bring the needed space for those who weren’t meant to be “there”, but there’s more than that. 

An underestimated barrier is due to the lack of role models and mentors for minorities. We’re missing examples to be inspired with or, to say it in a more polite way, we’re missing inspiring female figures that have enough space to climb to the top and go for leadership roles.

Then, there’s the gender pay gap: having a transparent process in the payroll system would allow employees to better estimate their value and aspire for more, and also to be able to compete in a fair game.

Last, but not least, motherhood and professional life still pose major challenges . When a woman becomes a mother, she faces lots of changes, often related to how the “post-partum” life and the return to work would be. 
The awareness around this issue is certainly growing, however there’s a long way to go to achieve a harmonious balance between these two aspects.

Many people talk about AI and other emerging technologies, but in your view, which innovation is actually reshaping how people learn and enter the tech industry — especially women coming from non-technical backgrounds? And how can communities support this transition?

I’ll go with a bold opinion: there’s so much noise around AI that it risks to be considered no more than a buzzword, especially if those talking about it haven’t seen all the changes before 2023. Since the advent of conversational AI chatbots, AI is on everyone’s lips and that’s a massive problem: on one side, we got not enough education on the implications of using this kind of tools and, on the other one, there has been so much adoption that a real control and limitation is unattainable. 

I think we should talk more about how people grow their hard skills with microlearning: courses that last more than 3 hours no longer have so much appeal, and people are expressing their need to come back in presence to be able to focus. For those who can’t or don’t want to, microlearning is representing the best way to learn fast and be able to be on track on a domain, such as the tech one, that’s running at an incredible speed and asks you to be as performant as ever. 
Think of the number of bootcamps, online workshops and platforms for courses that have increased in the last years: people want to connect, in whatever way, and they want to grow. 

Training paths can be tailored to people’s demand, and be more and more adaptive to the market needs. That’s powerful and incredibly democratic. 

Mentorship and visible role models play a huge role in retention and confidence for women in tech. Can you recall a moment when a mentor shaped your path in a meaningful way?

I should go with the memory of a conversation of a person I’ve always admired for his professional career.

Emerging in this field is not easy, especially if you’re a woman. Let’s be honest on that. And then there’s the well-known impostor syndrome.

Feeling confident enough to give myself a pat on the back required many years, but it all started when one person, attending a talk I had been preparing for months, just stopped by at the end to tell me the word “brilliant”. That’s one of the greatest compliments I’ve been given from an authoritative professional, and sometimes a little push is enough to make real talents find the courage to fly -that’s not autoreference!-.

For organizations or community leaders who genuinely want to move from awareness to action, what are three steps to improve female representation in tech? And which of these tends to meet the strongest resistance at the beginning — and why?

One: give them the chance to speak their truth, in the good and the bad way, since reality is the best thing we need as human beings. 
No promises, no pink-washing, just sharing experiences to be encouraged on doing better, using social channels to spread the word, recognizing their values through initiatives that really have a value for them (ask what, it could be surprising!). 

Two: flank people with inspiring models that allow women to grow, everyday, and to help them feel confident enough to recognize the limits they need to work on. 
Identify the mentors, the ones that could lead a change for other people, and entrust them with this great responsibility. 

Three: female quotas could be a double-edged sword. Instead of using the quotas as a metric to measure the inclusion level, pay attention to the details that count for the people you already work with, and grow a safe, inclusive and supportive environment. If the numbers would help an organization, pinky promises would let it sink quite fast. 

Serena Sensini is Innovation Lead at Dedalus and she’s a Computer Engineer specialized in Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing, with a mission to build truly inclusive spaces for women and other underrepresented groups in technology.

She has been leading community-driven initiatives for years, including founding The Red Code, a blog launched in 2021 that explains IT and AI concepts in an accessible and inclusive way, now featuring more than 100 articles.

She is also the author of five technical books aimed at developers and aspiring technologists, providing practical guidance and resources to support professional growth in the tech ecosystem.

Passionate about community building, Serena actively contributes to tech events, workshops, and mentorship programs, empowering individuals who too often remain at the margins of the industry. She connects people, skills, and opportunities to foster shared innovation and long-term impact.

Her vision is a more equitable and collaborative tech landscape — one where talent has no barriers, and innovation thrives through diversity.